#most self indulgent thing i've ever initiated

[unavernales]

"you can put your things wherever you'd like," paion offers with a gesture around the room. "you and haru can sleep in here at the end of the night. i'll take the guest bedroom." although the doctor's offer seems gentlemanly, it's quite... self indulgent. no doubt he'd have his hand down his pants all night thinking about what the two of them were up to. maybe this was a bad idea.

when haru suggested a sleepover with her "two favorite people" paion didn't think it through properly. all he wanted was to make haru happy, and now he just feels awkward. and a little creepy. farrah just stands in the doorway smacking her gum before setting down her overnight bag with a shrug.

"sounds good to me~! hey babe!" she's falling onto the bed beside haru to get a kiss or five. paion has to look away, feeling like a voyeur, especially with farrah wearing her satin nightie and haru wearing nothing but paion's oversized shirt. jeez. he and haru had taken a very satisfying shower and were cuddling before farrah arrived. maybe they should have gone a second round, because paion feels tense.

"if you want anything to eat or drink, just let me know." should he sit down? he decides to leave his bedroom door open. "haru, you said you had something planned, right?" not that he wants to interrupt their... greetings. @mournus

[impishjesters]

Jax x Reader w/depression/suicidal tendencies

warning(s): mentions of depression/suicidal behavior/tendencies, nothing graphic though, mentions of morbid/dark humor note: it's only mentioned that he has feelings for you, whether romantic or platonic is left up to the reader. A/N: I think this is the fastest I've ever wanted to write for something utterly new to me, usually it takes a while of being into a series or liking a character to wanna write something. This was...less than twelve hours? This was probably the most self-indulgent thing I've written in a while.

Nobody was safe from Jax’s pranks, including you—regardless of how much he found himself gradually enjoying your company.

It’s actually a right of passage at this point that every new person (as rare as it is) who shows up is subjected to some awful prank to gauge just how much of an easy or difficult target they’ll be.

You handle the pranks with ease. Sure it can be annoying, but there’s little that can seemingly “kill” you here.

Which is a shame really—well, only slightly.

Your therapist would’ve probably found it a good thing, trying to off yourself in a digital world where sleeping and eating were no longer required likely meant the inability to die.

Not in a traditional sense anyway.

You’re the only one ballsy enough to prank Jax back, which isn’t easy but when a prank is successful? Oh, it’s worth it to see his reaction.

There’s an unspoken prank war back and forth, but typically the other’s are the subject of your guys’ pranks. Somehow it feels more rewarding with the joint effort.

It's not often, but sometimes Jax's pranks will go a step too far and trigger something unpleasant. He's not really sure why you just walk off like that, those pranks don't make him feel as satisfied for whatever reason.

Once a special type of friendship grows between the two of you, the pranks lessen—not entirely though—nah he loves the unsuspecting reactions of a prank you didn’t see coming.

The pranks become less hostile and more casual—he’s got a reputation to keep after all, regardless of how he feels about you.

The initial reaction to someone being told there was no way out was to panic, you however, didn’t..well not outright. Your initial reaction is dark humor—even with the whole censorship thing.

Ragatha is the only one initially disturbed/worried over your dark sense of humor, which should be expected from one of them since they’ve been there longer.

Jax is aware of your morbid sense of humor and often plays along with it, especially in the beginning—later in the friendship though? Yeah, there’s no noticeable physical change, but he’s only a tad worried.

When not tormenting the other’s Jax stuck with you, or vice versa.

After the attempted drowning and standing (willingly) in harm’s way of one (or three) of the rides, Jax keeps your bedroom key closer in hand than the others.

And honestly? Ragatha doesn’t even blame him. You aren’t distant from them, but you do tend to favour Jax’s company. Regardless of her feelings about him as a person, it becomes obvious that he feels something less hostile towards you compared to them.

It takes a while before you finally confess to Jax that prior to being trapped in this digital hell, you were medicated for depression/suicidal tendencies. And while the digital world took away things like needing sleep and food, it didn’t get rid of the thoughts or urges.

Now—had this been someone else telling him all this? He’d be very uncaring and probably make a nasty “joke”, but because it’s you? He’s treading into foreign territory here when it comes to emotions.

There’s not really anything he can say that would make you feel better, but he does show a more rare tender side, offering to be there whenever you need him. Just to backpedal like a tsundere and say that he won’t always be free ( a lie, the fuck else does he have to do?), but he’ll try and make time for you during those moments.

He doesn’t do some pinky promise bullshit, I mean he can and would, but he doesn’t expect his offer and attempts to do that much (words of promise aren’t on the same level as a prescription drug after all).

But if being around his rude ass self and doing the occasional nice *gag* gestures of like, hugging or whatever helps you, he’ll do it—just, not with others around obviously. Again, man has a reputation.

From then on Jax is more aware of where you are around him at all times, not in a suffocating way though. Well, not intentionally, he has his moments. But he’s trying, again this is new territory for him.

Jax makes it his unspoken, personal goal to make sure you don’t tread the line of becoming abstracted.

Bonus (fluff)

Jax will make an attempt not to immediately recoil from your touch when others are present.

I’m not talking “Whoops, sorry to bump into you”, I’m talking about grabbing onto his arm or being in his personal bubble because you need something grounding or whatever.

More often than none his immediate reaction is to just use you to lean on, elbow or arm resting on top of your head to give you some contact and pressure. (He does it out of habit even when you don't need it.)

Sure he probably looks like an ass to others, but after a while, they sort of just get used to it since you never bring up being offended by the act.

But in private? Yeah, sure shoot, just don’t expect him to put any effort into returning anything. Maybe the drape of an arm or his legs, but if it’s really bad? He’ll lay or sit there while you cling to him like a koala.

Jax actually finds it kinda funny how tightly you hold on whenever he gets up.

“Wow, you really holdin’ on there.”

[quiet-saint]

More android!Vergil hcs nsfw included. Vergil/reader

Nsfw/+18.

A/n: idk I swear I WAS working on rockstar!dante (3.1k and done but idk if I like it :( but if y'all want it i'll drop it) i just wanted to get more android vergil out there. Self-indulgent as always!!

☆ Didn't really want to be your bodyguard initially. Could've refused your father's request as he is a deviant but he felt something within his programming, an instinct to protect. It is what he was made for after all. Deep down even after all the damage he endured under the mundus corporation, Vergil still wants to protect.

☆ Expected to find a spoiled brat of a human. Is pleasantly surprised to discover you're polite, quiet, if a little annoyed and upset. Understandable given the situation.

☆ Dresses in suits, button ups, slacks. Always looks impeccable.

☆ When Vergil accompanies you anywhere outside of the shared highrise luxury apartment you were relocated to, he changes the color of his eyes and hair in an effort to hide his nature both as a deviant and a Sparda android. Styles his hair differently too.

☆ Speaking of the Sparda line there have only ever been four created. You know of Vergil's brothers, Dante and Nero but you have yet to meet them. Vergil refuses to talk about the first Sparda model.

☆ Ends up doing more than his guard duties. Vergil cooks for you because you skip too many meals for his liking. "Are you truly incapable of taking proper care of yourself?"

☆ Used to cook for V quite a bit

☆ Vergil can and will help you with most things if you ask. He's an android. He's strong and has access to all kinds of knowledge. He won't help you with something if it's not good for you, though. Anything self-destructive is an immediate no. Anything that has the potential to interfere with his job is a no.

ִ ࣪𖤐Nsfw ִ ࣪𖤐

☆ Is a bit of a brat tamer.

☆ Loves to see you cry and squirm beneath him whether from overstimulation or desperation. Gives him the best feeling of power to have you, a human, begging so sweetly. As such he's big on overstimulation and edging.

☆ Vergil has a normal looking cock. Packs more in length than girth. Could buy parts to change it but doesn't want to. Likes it how it is.

☆ His loads are thinner in terms of consistency. Can adjust how much he releases. Also there's the faintest blue tint to it. Tastes like saline but like, faint and a slight altered?

☆ Vergil has thought about that product that temporarily replaces an android's usual taste with a different flavor because he's curious to see how long he can get you to stay there on your knees, sucking and lapping at him. He's thinking about getting the cherry flavor.

☆ Once he discovers your little reactions to his touches, what gets you to moan and squirm, Vergil immediately files it away. Knows exactly how to touch you now.

☆ Can and will hold off his own release for however long he wants.

☆ Into degrading you. Don't try to degrade him though.

☆ Gets off on treating you like a toy sometimes.

☆ As rough and a little mean as Vergil can be sometimes, he's actually quite sweet and gentle.

☆ Android Vergil is actually good at aftercare. Needs to make sure you're okay. The type to run a bath if you want. Can and will also jump in the shower with you.

ִ ࣪𖤐

Literally can't stop thinking about sticking the dmc chars in like the dbh world. I've got who'd be an android, what jobs they have and shit. Idk it's just such an interesting setting.

[backfliips]

As an artist and an author who shares my stuff on the internet for people to see, there's a level of intimacy and vulnerability associated with the things I create and the way I choose to present them. When I was in high school I focused a lot on trying to please my audience and it made me become obsessed with numbers and validation, and ultimately made my art into more of a commodity than something I created for myself.

In recent years, I've been focusing more on just creating for myself, and sharing those self-indulgent things with the world. By doing that, I've created stories that feature trans characters without feeling like I have to check off boxes about what makes something "good" representation --- and in doing so, I think I've created far better representation than I ever did before.

I've had far more people, now, saying that the art I'm creating and the stories I'm writing resonate with them than I did before. I've had far more people say they feel seen by the rawness and the eroticism and the candid, earnest way I depict things, and I think that's because it's coming from a genuine place: my own self-indulgence!

I am someone who likes to explore nuance, and I'm not someone who has an interest in compromising my perspective just to make a plot flow better or to make an interaction go as initially planned. I want things to feel real, to be real! And because of that, I think my work has touched many more people in many more intimate and personal ways than it ever did before, back when I was actively trying to reach as many people as possible.

I think, at the end of the day, the most important part of writing a story or illustrating a scene or just putting pencil to metaphorical paper is to be doing something that you like, and to be doing something that you care about.

I'm self-indulgent! I write sappy, saccharine smut. I dive headfirst into the uncomfortable parts of being trans and find the bits that I personally find empowering, and I am earnest and honest and genuine in how I depict them. I draw lots and lots of trans gay sex --- and because I'm drawing something I find beautiful, many people have commented on the beauty they see in it.

I think representation is very important. I think it's important for people to feel seen and to feel heard and to be depicted in the things they love. And I think, on top of that, it's even more important for that representation to becoming from a place of actual care, from a place of actual love, and from a place of passion for the work the artist is creating.

I didn't set out to be a voice for all trans people by writing and drawing the things I create. I don't WANT to be a mouthpiece for an entire community with diverse and unique needs for each individual --- but I am immensely humbled by the response I've gotten from just being unapologetically myself within my artwork.

I don't know --- it's just really nice. Thanks.

[dokoni-mo]

Warm Water || William Afton x GN! Reader

summary: you find yourself exausted, but he knows just what to do.

mostly SFW // Fluff

word count : 3773

warnings: age-gap relationship (reader is 20, Will is almost 40), dom/sub undertones, secret relationship, will is obsessive but not as much in this one, fluff, kisses, non-sexual nudity, cuddling, Willy has scars, pet names, exhaustion, hickeys, swearing, Will likes being called sir i just know it, cuddling, non-sexual intimacy, not very proofread, also just laregly a lot of rambling adfjafk idk im so tired, very very slight sexual themes so minors dni

a/n: i'm tagging my normal people for Crave (aka the peepaw chronicles) for this because it does take place in the same universe, but i'll leave it up to interpretation on whether or not you deem it cannon to the story (so im sorry if you didn't want to be tagged!!),, this is probably the most-self indulgent thing i've ever written so please bear with me,, i'm just very tired from school LMAOO and wanted to write smth more fluffy with willy and his lil bun

~~~

William Afton fucking hated baths. He hated a lot of things, but baths were probably towards the top of the list.

Even thinking about them made his skin crawl. Just the thought of sitting there, in your own dirt and grime? In a stuffy, humid room next to where the toilet is? Disgusting. He didn't consider himself to be a germaphobe, no. That wasn't it at all. He worked with children on a Monday-through-Friday basis. He wasn't scared of germs or getting sick. He'd built up quite the immune system over the years of working at the diner.

He just found the notion of sitting there like a big, sweaty dumpling inside of a soup comprised of water and your own dirt, sweat, and germs revolting.

But you liked them. You liked them a lot.

It was one of the few things William didn't quite understand about you. How could you like something so gross? You had explained your reasoning to him before when he had first found out. Something about how the warmth all around you was comforting, as well as the various different soaps and scents you could use to spruce it up. But, try as you might to explain it, he still didn't understand. Couldn't a shower do the same thing? Without you having to sit in your own filth?

Whatever. He wasn't going to argue with you about it. His bunny enjoyed many strange things, but he wasn't going to take any enjoyment away from them just because he didn't understand. He loved you. He'd never do such a thing.

As out-of-character as it was for him, he found himself buying more bath-related things to secretly store away in his bathroom. For when you came over, of course. You seemed to appreciate it when he gave the array of soaps and other liquids to you, giving him a nice kiss on the cheek. As much as he didn't understand your reasoning, your little smile was all he cared about at the end of the day. He could tolerate your conflicting views. That's what love is all about, isn't it?

William didn't share too many disagreements with you. Not as much as he initially expected when he first made you his. You were soulmates, after all. It's only natural you share similar perspectives.

It was both a blessing and a curse, however. As much as William liked how similar you were, there was a few things he wished he kept for himself and himself only. Such as the work-ethic the two of you shared.

The older man was somewhat of a workaholic. While he reserved the weekends for you and only you, he was much different during the week. He would spend extra hours at the diner frequently. And, when he wasn't at his restaurant, he was tinkering away at some side-project down in his cellar. It wasn't very healthy, but it's how he liked to do things. Gave him character, but also made his hair turn grey.

You liked his grey hairs, though. And he was still handsome with it.

But, his bunny was the same way. You being in college, you had a lot of work to do. Sometimes so much that you'd have to bring your assignments over to his house on the weekends and do them there, even though the two of you agreed long ago that the weekends were couple time. You were a driven little thing. William could see it when he got to watch you work, in the pain in your lower back and shoulders, and in the dark circles under your precious eyes when you fell asleep next to him.

Poor bunny. He didn't want you to work so hard. It hurt his heart seeing you so stressed all the time. Your schooling is important, yes, but you mustn't be so hard on yourself. You're a clever little rabbit. You don't need to devote so much of your time on work, surely not.

Besides, sometimes, William couldn't help but feel a little jealous when all your attention was on your books and papers rather than him.

This was one of those times.

With the turn of the seasons, your professors had also swamped you with several different tests and assignments to turn in sooner rather than later. You never really liked to complain about it to William, he found, but he could tell that the pressure was weighing on you. This had been the third weekend in a row that you had brought your coursework over to his house, your nose buried in the pages; your eyes on the words rather than him.

William kept you company while you worked to have himself nearby, but he couldn't help but be a little peeved. The weekends were sir and bunny's time. Not boring old college.

The brit was watching your back as you scribbled away in your notebook, sitting on the floor in front of him with his coffee table used as your make-shift desk. You had been at it since the moment you finished the breakfast he made you this morning, and now the Utah sun was just starting to creep below the horizon. Worry was in the older man's grey eyes. When was the last time he saw you stand up? Or even scurry yourself to the bathroom? Or get a drink of water? He couldn't remember. And that wasn't good.

He was a patient man, yes, and did value a college education. But William was tired of waiting for you. He barely gets to see his adorable bunny during the week. He'd rather spend this time with you curled up in his bed, closer to him on his lap, or just talking to you. But you hadn't said a word in hours. Even though you were right in front of him, he missed his bunny. And the amount you were working was getting a little ridiculous for his tastes.

"Love?" He asked you through the silence, gently reaching out a hand and rubbing circles into your back, "Are you almost done? It's getting late, little one."

He watched as you looked over your shoulder towards him, but not enough to have your full attention. You seemed just a tad annoyed with him, but he understood. When you were concentrated, you didn't much like him disturbing you.

But he didn't much like not having you in his arms right now.

"Umm..." you breathed, "I dunno, Will. I have, like... two chapters left? To take notes on? So just a little longer, okay?"

The older man felt his jaw clench, "You said that three hours ago, bunny."

"I know, I just... I need to get this done before the deadline. I'm sorry."

"And when exactly is all this due then, hm?"

"Uh... friday?"

"It's Saturday, love."

"I know, I know, just... Just gimme one more hour. Then I promise I'll be done."

William let out a sigh. You had said that three hours ago, too.

The brit watched as you went back to scribbling away in your notebook, finding himself more annoyed. Not at you, of course, but by the situation. You didn't need to work this hard, no. You were William's bunny, after all. You shouldn't ever need to lift a finger around him. But, you were a workaholic just like he was. You liked doing things yourself

He loved and hated you for it.

His fingertips still on your back, William felt his other hand reach up to smooth your hair away from your face. Even though he didn't get a direct shot of you, he could tell that you were tired. He could see the dark circles under your eyes from his spot on the couch, and the slight redness that had crept into them. Hell, your back must be aching too from sitting on the ground for so long. And didn't your pretty little head hurt? Surely it did.

Sweet bunny. You needed a break. You needed to be done for the day. Plain and simple.

Reaching forward, William pressed a few soft, warm kisses to the side of your cheek and hair as he took your pencil away from you, laying it on the table. When you turned around at him to protest, he seized the opportunity to capture your lips into his, lingering on your sweet taste for perhaps longer than he should have. He pulled back and brought his hands close, cradling your jaw a few inches away from his face.

"I think you've done far enough for today, little one." He said to you, using his thumbs to caress your cheeks, "Wouldn't you agree?"

He could feel your cheeks heat slightly under his touch, "Will, if I finish today, I'll have time to visit your office during the week. So I really need to finish."

William let out a chuckle. He always did like having you in his office. It was cute you were thinking of him.

"But you're here now, my love." He said, "And I want you now."

"I... I want you too, but-"

William shushed you before you could continue, leaning in and giving you another sweet, long kiss.

The brit pulled away, looking into your tired eyes again, "You work far too hard, bunny. You'll burn yourself out. And I want my little rabbit to be happy, yeah?"

You nodded in response.

"Of course I do. And I'd hope you'd want the same for yourself, yes?"

You nodded again, "Yes... sir."

William's soft smile widened as he let out a pleased hum, "Good bunny. Now, why don't we relax a bit, hm? You've definitely earned it, my darling."

He watched as your cheeks heated up some more, your eyes flickering downward, "I... I think I'm gonna be too tired to-"

The brit chuckled, "No, love, no. I'm not talking about that. I was thinking of something a little different for tonight."

"Like what?"

"You still like baths, right bunny?"

"Yeah? Why?"

William couldn't believe he was saying this. But, he knew it'd have to be something special to get you away from your work. Luckily, he knew just what to do. Even if it wrecked his pride just a hair.

"Would you care to join me for one?"

You furrowed your brow in confusion at his words, but a soft smile still remained out of amusement.

"Join you? For a bath?" You asked.

"Yes, love."

You let out a little laugh, "Will, you hate baths. You've made that really clear over these last few months."

William let out a hum, brushing some more hair away from your face, "Yes, I do. But I love you far more than I hate them. And I know they're always relaxing for you, love. And I want to help you do just that. You're tired, bunny. I can see it."

He leaned in and gave you a quick kiss on the forehead.

"Just let me take care of you." He continued, "Like I promised I would. Can you do that for me, love?"

The older man saw how your smile widened at his words, "Fine, fine. Just promise me you're not gonna complain the whole time."

"Of course not, bunny. Now, come here. Let me pick you up, yeah?"

William took you wrapping your arms around his neck as you accepting his invitation. Leaning down a little more, he scooped you up into his arms and held you close, pressing a kiss to your blushy cheek a you giggled as his strength. Your legs wrapped around his waist, he carried you all the way from his living room into his master-bathroom, placing you down so you could sit on the lidded-toilet.

Rolling up his dress-shirt sleeves, William opened up the cabinet under his sink and looked at the vast array of bath materials he had collected for you. He pulled out each one and laid them on the ground, making sure the labels were pointed towards you so that you could read them.

Once all of the products were out, the brit closed the cabinet and took a knee in front of you for you to discuss with him which ones you wanted to use.

"Do you even know what these things are?" You asked, picking up a clear bottle to read it more closely.

"If I'm being honest, love," he said, "I have no idea. The woman at the shop helped me pick a lot of them out."

You giggled again, "Well, this here is a bubble-bath. You put it in the water while it's running and it makes a lot of bubbles. And that baggie is bath salts. It just makes the bath, like... mineral-y."

The older man quirked a brow, "Mineral-y?"

"It's hard to describe! It's just good for your skin."

"I see." William reached down and picked up a pinkish jar, "What about this? It doesn't look like you've used it that much."

"Oh, those are petal-soaps. They look like flower petals but they're actually soap. They dissolve in the water after a while. They make the water smell like roses too! I was saving them for a special occasion."

"Well, is this a special enough occasion?"

"Getting the Mr. Afton into a bath? Hell yeah it is."

William chuckled, "You flatter me, bunny."

You smiled back at him, "The petals and the bubble-bath will be nice. That's what I wanna use."

"If you say so, love."

With your final approval on the products being used, William shifted himself over to his large, porcelain-white bath, reaching in and stopping the drain before turning the hot-water valve on. The sound of the water hitting the dry tub filled the air, the pipes creaking just a tad at the rare usage. While the water poured down, the brit used the opportunity to pour in some of the bubble bath liquid. William then let the water run for a few minutes more, leaving his fingertips under the water until it warmed up.

"Is this too hot for you, bunny?" He asked. You reached forward past the older man to feel the water.

"Nah, it's good. I like it to be real warm."

"Perfect. Wait here then."

Shaking the water off his hand, William stood up from his kneeling position over to one of the longer, taller cabinets nearby. Reaching inside, he pulled out a few of his favorite soft, lush purplish-grey towels, walking back over and handing one to you.

"Here, love." He said, "So you don't freeze to death before the bath fills up."

You took the towel with a soft thank you as you stood up from your seat on the toilet. You turned away from the brit as you pulled your shirt off over your head, his eyes fixated on your bare back as he unbuttoned his dress shirt. As you slipped off your pants and underwear, William could see the ghosts of former hickeys he had given you past weekends on your shoulders and thighs. You were a good bunny and didn't try and cover them up with any makeup or anything, just like he wanted. The more recent ones were fading, though.

He'd have to fix that soon.

He continued to watch as you kicked all your clothes into a pile by the foot of the bath and wrapped the towel around you. Your nude body no longer available for him to see, he went back to removing his own clothes.

Once they were all off, and neatly folded on the edge of his sink, William wrapped his towel around his lower half and stepped closer to you. You were watching the water fill up and he snaked his long, scarred arms around your middle, pulling you close to his chest. He could feel how you smiled as he pressed his kisses into your hair.

"I love you, bunny." He mumbled against you, feeling your little hands glide over the scars on his forearms as you leaned back against him.

"I love you too, Will." you responded.

He continued his assault of kisses onto your cheek and jaw, "Are you feeling any better, my love?"

"Definitely. I didn't even realize how tired I was."

William let out a hum as his kisses found your neck, "You have been working for almost 12 full hours, bunny."

"Oh my god, really?"

"Mhm."

You let out a groan, "Oh my god, that's so embarrassing. I'm sorry, Will. I didn't even realize. You must've been so bored."

"Don't apologize, little one. I know how much your Uni means to you."

"Yeah, but still... I feel bad. I don't want you to be bored. And we only get to see each other on weekends. It doesn't help I already pissed half of it away."

"It's not your job to entertain me, love. You know just having you here is enough."

"But I don't wanna be just enough. I wanna be like... better. Because you do so much for me. I... I feel like I don't try hard enough sometimes. And I'm sorry."

William let out a sympathetic hum and he lifted your chin up to him, giving your lips a sweet, reassuring peck.

"Everything about you is perfect, bunny. I wouldn't change one thing about you. You try more than you realize."

"How?"

"Well, you did say you were working so late because you wanted to see me in my office, yeah?"

"Yeah..."

"And why is that?"

"Because I know you like it when I do."

William gave you another kiss, "See?"

You smiled at your own silliness, standing on your tip-toes to kiss him one last time, "Fine, fine. You win."

William smiled to match your own, "You worry too much, bunny. I understand what's going on in that pretty head of yours. I love you, and nothing's going to ever change that."

"What if I was ugly?"

"You're not ugly, love."

"But what if I was?"

"I'd still love you."

"What if, like, I only spoke in rhymes or something?"

"It'd be... odd, but I'd still love you."

You giggled, "What if I burned down the diner?"

"Well... you know, I never really liked it much. You'd honestly be doing me a favor, love. So I'd probably love you even more."

"Should I go do it then?"

"Maybe later, bunny. Looks like our bath is full."

Giving you one last kiss on your cheek, William padded over to the running faucet and turned off the valve. In his peripheral, he saw you grab the can of the fake petals and open it up, grabbing a fistful and throwing the small soaps on top of the bubbles. The reddish-pink hue contrasted greatly over the white bubbles and water, making the bath look rather pretty. William was impressed.

William allowed himself to step into the bath first, unwrapping his lower half, folding and placing the towel on the ground nearby. The bubbles dispersing around him, William made sure that water was still a good temperature for you before he sat down in the bath. Once situated, he held out his hand for you.

Placing your soft, small palm in his, you let your towel drop to the floor as you got in the bath yourself. Using his hand as a balance, you sunk your legs in beneath the bubbles as you sat down in the water as well. William spread his bare legs apart beneath the water to make room for you, holding onto your waist and guiding you to lean back against him. You followed his silent order, your bare back against his scarred chest as you rested your head on his strong shoulder. The man pressed a few kisses to your hair as he wrapped his arms around you beneath the water. You relaxed against him easily, and your eyes fluttered shut at the warm feeling around you.

"Is it too hot, bunny?" He asked you, already knowing what you would say, but still wanting to make sure.

"It's perfect, Will." You mumbled, "Thank you."

The brit felt himself smile, "There's no need to thank me, little one. I'm just happy I got you to myself now."

You breathed out a laugh, "Didn't like third-wheeling my textbook, hm?"

"Not at all." He pressed another kiss to your cheek, "You're mine. I should never be the third wheel."

"I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to."

"I know. It's alright. Just relax, bunny."

Leaning down to press more kisses into the back of your neck, William lifted up his wet hands out of the water, making a splash echo through the bathroom. Steadily, he grabbed onto your shoulders and rubbed firm, massaging circles into your back with his thumbs and the heels of his palms. You shut your eyes tighter at the feeling, a few low groans escaping the back of your throat.

"Feel good?" He asked. All you could do was nod as he chuckled, "Good. I'm glad. Your muscles are quite firm, love. You shouldn't be sitting on the floor like that for so long."

"If I got on the couch," you said, "I knew you wouldn't let me get off it again and back to work."

William laughed, "You know me far too well, bunny."

"You're just very predictable sometimes."

"Oh? Am I now?"

You nodded again, "Only sometimes though. Like today when I woke up, I would've never guessed you'd be in here with me right now."

"I can't say I predicted that either, love."

You breathed out a laugh, "If you don't like it, you don't have to stay, Will."

"No, no." William pressed more kisses to the back of your neck, rubbing deeply into your more firm muscles, "I actually think it's rather nice in here."

"Really? Or are you just trying to not make me feel bad?"

"I mean it, love. It's nice. But, perhaps I'm biased. How could I not enjoy being so close to my precious rabbit, hm?"

Your smile grew as you leaned back against his chest again, making his arms return to their home around your waist. You had scooted down so that your head rested more so on his collarbone, allowing you to look up at him more clearly, and him at you.

"Along with predictable," you said, "You're also really cheesy sometimes."

"Oh, you love it though, don't you bunny?"

"I do." You leaned up and gave the brit a kiss on the jaw, "And I love you too. Thank you for everything tonight, Will. I really appreciate it."

The older man felt his heart swell in his chest as he pressed a kiss to your forehead.

"Anytime, my love. Anytime."

~~~

tags: @guinea-pig16 @the-official-memester @randomwriteralan @mrsrogerwaters @laylaaftonshit @cherry-slushee @insert-memical-username @mrssafton @horrorking2000 @artist-anon08 @tuttifuckinfruttifriday @jamiethenerdymonster @kimyona-san @purplewolfcoffee @violetlmfaoo

apologies to any blogs tumblr wont let me tag!! as well as anyone who didn't want to be tagged (pls let me know if you don't want to be tagged in all Willy works :)) )

[sunnylolli]

How many au's do you got? and what's their names

Oh sweet mother, that's like counting grains of sand at the beach at this point-

I'll handpick from what I've posted and then add two or three more:

1. "Can I stay for a year or two?"/CISFAYOT- Alfred's Mentally Ill and goes to stay with Arthur to unwind so he can get back to work ASAP. Just to be jumpsacared by Arthur having gotten therapy and who is now enforcing obligatory therapy on Alfred which absolutely works. He has a stern dad-to-president talking to with Alfred's boss after christmas and has him put on paid sick leave so he can start actually getting better.

2. Lighthouse au - Arthur's a lighthouse keeper, Francis is a myserious specter of the sea that lures him in

3. Time Travel au - Alfred forgets to mind his business when out for a walk in the English Woodlands and ends up stepping through a fairy-circle-esque circle of branches and trees and is teleported back to early middle age England to meet England when he was 200 years old.

4. Domestic FACE au/Domestic au: A modern day, human au centered around the FACE-family, but where I've branched into including the nordics for self-indulgence. There's not really any plot, it's just a slice-of-life/Buying groceries kind of au :,)

5. Pirate au: (They are countries in this) Arthur's a pirate on the run from the English Crown, Alfred's a wee lad that hides in a crate of oranges and sneaks onto Arthur's ship. Arthur recognizes that he's a nation, thus let's him stay at the price of menial labor. It's an au where Arthur weren't there to discover Alfred in the 17th century and were held prisoner i England until he broke free and went to sea. Meanwhile Alfred's been growing up with his people around the east-coast but wants to explore and do more things, feeling like he's meant for more, so he finds a ship and sneaks on.

Gonna make a read more so this doesn't go rogue on the dash:

Here are the ones I haven't posted about because there's not really any art of it:

5. Medieval comedy sketch: In which we follow Arthur (Nation) through his very eventful life in the 15th century as a personal guard to an excessively annoying prince. The prince eventually grows on him and Arthur's ready to lay down his life several times for him, but turns out so is the prince. I started it initially as a full-on comedy sitcom (think Monty Python), but it became a comedy melodrama in the end.

I'm not mad about it though, one of the more lighthearted and fun au's to write - It's honestly my favorite one.

6. Big, little empire: This is prime example of biting off more than you can chew for me. This au is also medieval, but much much earlier- It's set in around year 1000, during the reign of King Cnut the Great and is about Arthur's and Asger's (Mathias, once he's properly christened) relations, personal and political. My plan for it was to explore Arthur as starting out watching empires and becoming one himself - Though with the constant nagging at the back of his head that he is not meant for greatness and the doubt is what consumes him in the end.

7. Race you to the end: Yet another prime example of too much plot for a skilled procrastinator who gets easily overwhelmed with details. This au is genuinely one of the saddest, most heartwrenching au's I have ever had, and I have MANY.

The au is nationverse and is about Gilbert and Ludwig maneuvering Gilbert's bucketlist once it becomes apparent that Gilbert is terminal. The title itself makes me want to cry, because it refers to the first scene where they're at the beach; Gilbert insists they race to see who reaches a group of seagulls first and ends up winning by tripping up Ludwig. I know it's a spoiler, but Gilbert does die at the end and Ludwig goes back to the beach from the beginning and chases a pack of gulls by himself.

8. Portrait of the modern nuclear family/Family unit: Tw for talk of drug and substance abuse for this one, lads.

This au is about FACE, but unlike my other FACE au's, it's dysfunctional. MAJORLY dysfunctional. Alfred is caught up with meth/cocaine and juggles a failing career on the side that leaves him to take up loans to fund his addiction. Matthew's caught up with weed and alcohol, though he's managing to seek help and make an attempt to get better, because he does not want to end up like Arthur and Francis. Francis is a bonnafide wine-alcoholic ("but it's wine, so it doesn't count!") and Arthur's "just" an alcoholic who has too much to say and too much work for his own good to maintain.

Together they make the perfect cocktail for family get together's like birthdays, holidays and whatnot, because all four of them together always ends up ruining the occasion. But they all want to pretend they're normal, so they keep doing it. Over and over again. (Nationverse)

9. Alfred gets lost in the Canadian winter wilderness au: Exactly as the title says, Alfred's on his way up to visit Matthew over the holidays just to get caught in a blizzard. He sees something in the middle of the road, swerves and crashes. It's just about Alfred wandering through the thick of it surviving and encountering ✨folklore creatures✨. It's a bit of a mystique, a bit of a horror au.

10. Haunted house au: Alfred forces Arthur to come along with him on several trips to American and European haunted or abandoned houses for the thrill of it. They end up in an actually haunted one in the US and things go south very fast. A very cliché horror, but one that I also enjoy writing immensely.

I am ending it here, but know that I do have more 🪩💃

[landinrris]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers! Spread the self-love 💞

Oooh okay okay. I love all of my children or else they wouldn't be posted, but here are five particular favorites in no particular order:

Double Exposure- Paddock photographer Lando and Ferrari driver Carlos. I know I was harping on this one recently, but ugh, it still stands as a favorite. The way the title is both about photography and the plot... a core fic that I wrote in a few weeks.

Unconstrained- Ph.D. students Lando and Carlos do psychology. I wrote this one for a winter fic exchange for Jess. It is 100% the most self-indulgent self-projection thing I've ever written. Down to the program of study, Carlos' research interests, and the location. Another fic whose title has a double meaning to the plot. It hits so close to home that it lowkey stresses me out when I've gone back to read it.

Choosing My Confession- Witch Lando and Human Carlos. Even though it took me forever to finish, I particularly love this one because I love magical realism and I love people creating their own chosen families. I love there being some higher power but still getting to make conscious decisions. It's one I've been toying with a sequel for if I could come up with a plot, but I have some inklings.

Hide All Our Sins From the Daylight- Carlos and Lando get together in May 2023, and Carlos finds himself in a PR relationship shortly thereafter to help his contract negotiations. Yes, yes, the point has been rendered moot with Carlos off to Williams, but I stand by loving this fic. Singapore 2023 helped inform the ending so much, and I love Carlos finally getting to take his life into his own hands. On a personal level, writing the last half also helped me get through a not great extended family time, so I hold it near and dear.

Taste My Disaster (series)- When Lando and Carlos meet, Lando's an undergrad and Carlos is a master's student. They begin with a one-night stand, some life happens, and the next thing is that 8 years have passed. This is based almost completely on the movie "Sleeping With Other People," but I made it mine in my own way. When I reread the series, it still makes me emotional lowkey. It's the epitome of meeting someone initially at the wrong time and reconnecting at the right one. Plus, Part 2 is an ode to Western North Carolina, so that doesn't help the emotions 😅

[xserpx]

Planks rattled under Gorst’s boots. A flatbow bolt pinged off his breastplate. Another sank into the same shoulder he was already stuck in. He barely noticed, coming on faster and faster, twisted face speckled red, eyes fixed on Leo under his furiously wrinkled brows, short steel going up high.

Leo took one lurching step back, raising his sword, no idea how he’d have met that charge even with all his limbs.

Next to his ear, Jurand's flatbow made a sharp whipping sound.

— The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie

I love Jurand's competence in this chapter. I love that he saves Leo's life, that he thinks way ahead. His tactical intelligence, initiative, cool-headedness, martial skill, and loyalty are on full display and I hate acknowledging that anyone is cool in these books (because they are all also incredibly pathetic) but it is just very, very cool tbh. I love Gorst's death for how it showcases his strength & loyalty, he goes down in exactly the way someone like him should go down, but also Jurand killing him in defense of Leo is icing on the cake. I wonder what was going through his mind at this moment (or throughout the chapter/book/trilogy tbh 🙃), he has that catty line to Savine "What have you done, your Highness?" and I feel like he knew it was a trap all along but he goes along anyway in a way that suggests he's anticipated Leo's reaction and is indulging him. There's also this bit where Leo's male gayze is showing: Jurand stood with his flatbow resting on his shoulder, hair stirred by the sea breeze about his thoughtful frown. Is he ever hot on purpose? Waiting for the day Leo paints him like one of his French girls.

I'm sure I've said this before and I'm going to self-indulgently repeat myself: I love the idea of a role-reversal for Leo & Jurand, where Jurand becomes the man of the moment and Leo is more in the background admiring his physicality, feeling jealous of anyone who goes near him, making the inaudibly high-pitched whining sound that is the symptom of those cursed with chronic pining. Especially with Jappo — and it's Jurand's job as Lord Chamberlain to make sure he has a good time — it's the perfect moment for him to show off his incredible organisational skills and his ability to mediate the most stubborn & difficult of personalities. As much as Leo is a traditionalist, suited to fighting, Jurand is much better suited to adapting to this new world of diplomacy and bureaucracy, but the way he is also capable of doing things Leo's way, and getting Leo on side, gives him a unique edge above everyone else. In a way, Savine's contract potentially makes Jurand the most powerful person on the Closed Council, because anyone who can pull Leo's strings has an advantage. Hence why she is so quick to play her hand with Jurand. Being unashamedly gay, he also obviously has an edge over either of them when it comes to Jappo, and I think he could even ingratiate himself with Monza after being so loyal to Finree (I feel like Monza would get on better with Leo than Savine, tbh, though neither would fill her with confidence). Ultimately what makes Jurand great is his unassuming lack of egotism, which shouldn't be a tall order but in AoM it really, really is.

I just want that moment where Jappo looks at Jurand, looks at Leo, and is utterly baffled by it, because honestly, Leo's struck gold with having Jurand fall in love with him and he does not at all deserve him. The way nothing can break Jurand's loyalty - even Leo himself - and the way it lends him both strength (in the way it challenges and hones his various skills) and weakness (in his easily-manipulated emotions) is so interesting. The "I'm a bigger fool than you are, in my own way" line kills me, because he knows, logically, that he deserves better, but Leo is the man his heart has chosen and it's like he has zero say in it.

[active-mind-15]

Headcanons for Akashi getting scared?

I am back to indulge in my chronic Akashi brainrot. Please forgive me for the dissertation I'm about to drop on your timeline.

Now, first of all, we must establish that canonically (or at the very least, to my knowledge) Akashi has no phobias. BUT ☝🏿 I think that even with zero phobias, you can still get startled by things. So I'll just be talking about that.

Similar to my sleeping headcanons where I said it's probably very difficult to catch Akashi sleeping, it's probably equally, if not more, as difficult to startle him.

Since he's a very perceptive person and is always observing others whether they're aware of it or not, I would think it's pretty hard to startle someone who's always watching you. Because of this, there are only two scenarios in which I would think he'd ever be startled by something/somebody.

1: if he's really, really, REALLY focused on something. This is based on an NG-shuu from season 1 of the anime, where Akashi is playing shogi by himself and Midorima is trying to talk to him, but he's so focused on his game that he's not listening to half the things that Midorima says to him. NG-shuus are not canon events, I know, but it does give you a glimpse into how certain characters might act if a scenario played out differently. That's why Akashi pegs me as the type to focus on something so hard that he stops caring about his surroundings and focuses solely on whatever is in front of him, therefore making it easier to startle him in that state.

2: if he's let his guard down. This may sound similar to the first scenario but let me elaborate. If I were to make an analogy, scenario 1 is like sneaking up on a predator when the predator is sneaking up on something else; scenario 2 is like sneaking up on a predator while they're relaxing and not on high alert. Startling Akashi in scenario 2 would be possible simply because he feels safe enough to not be as observant of his surroundings. But since he almost always has his guard up, to startle him in this way would be a once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity.

I've discussed the scenarios in which it would be possible to startle Akashi, but let's address the elephant in the room: what would actually startle this boy?

Loud noises would be one of them, I think. If he's immersed in something or is relaxed enough and not expecting it, I think a loud noise would definitely startle him and raise his heckles. Think back to Kuroko's very first game during middle school when Akashi was caught off guard by the sound of Kuroko tripping over himself and falling. That's a milder example since Kuroko falling probably wasn't even that loud, but I would like to think that the louder the sound, the more startled he would be.

The second thing would be people touching him suddenly. Again, he's seen as a very high and mighty intimidating person. One does not simply touch Akashi Seijuro. Most physical contact he has with others is in the form of high-fives and fist-bumps. The other type of contact is the occasional hand on the shoulder from the Uncrowned Kings in his team, and even then it's mostly from Mibuchi. The times he's most surprised (at least while he's his original self) is when someone touches him when his guard is down and he doesn't have time to react.

The most prominent example of this is in season 3 volume 5 of the drama CDs when Nijimura invites him along to go get a meat bun from the convenience store. When he finds out that Akashi has never gone out to buy food on the way home, he decides to initiate Akashi into those types of things. It's only an audio CD so I can't see what's happening, but it sounded like Nijimura grabbed him--maybe by the arm, or maybe he swung an arm around Akashi's shoulder--and just pulled him along to the door. The moment Nijimura grabs him, Akashi sounds audibly surprised. His voice even gets higher in pitch when he tries to (weakly) protest that he wasn't even that hungry anyway. This probably comes from the fact that he doesn't engage in a lot of physical contact with his friends, so when something past a high-five or a hand on the shoulder occurs he's like ⁉️ for a quick sec, especially if he's being manhandled like I assumed Nijimura to be doing in the drama CD.

And, let's say that through some miracle, Akashi is actually startled by something/someone. What would he look like when he's startled? Well, for reference, what did he look like when Kuroko tripped and fell during a game?

As you can see, this boy looks like a literal cat when he's surprised or startled. He just has this very owlish expression with the way his eyes widen and his mouth is slightly open, which makes him look so adorable.

Going off of this, I would for sure think that he looks pretty similar to this when he gets startled. But when he startles, I don't think he would make any noise. Akashi and Aomine would probably be on opposite sides of the spectrum, in that regard. Akashi would probably be someone who would jolt a bit or even flinch if you've REALLY caught him at a bad time, but scream? Never. Over his dead body, in fact.

And the last part of this: if he startles around other people, how would they react to seeing his startled face?

I would think the first few times it happens, none of his friends (both in Teiko and Rakuzan) wants to mention it because they don't want to face Akashi's wrath in case he doesn't want the others to notice. But over time, especially post-Winter Cup, Akashi is more open and also more easygoing, so his friends feel more comfortable acknowledging it, whether it's apologizing for startling him or even lightly teasing him about it.

And, like I said, he canonically has no phobias, but that doesn't mean his friends haven't tried to see if he did. They prodded him about multiple things like ghosts (doesn't believe in them), roller coaster rides (he doesn't mind them but he doesn't go out of his way to ride them), bugs (he's not afraid of them but he does find them to be distinctly gross-looking), and even the dark (not being able to see isn't scary to him, just massively inconvenient), but he really doesn't have anything, in particular, that he's afraid of.

So to see him startled by anything is, once again, pretty rare. Not many situations in which you can catch this boy lacking. But when he is startled, it's almost refreshing to see. It makes him actually look his age since he's always so serious and pensive. His friends find it interesting to see more of Akashi's various expressions all across the emotional spectrum and secretly hope he shows more of himself as time passes.

Okay, I'm done. I've been typing forever. But I hope you enjoyed that.

[feshippingpolls]

"Alfred gets abuse and rudeness from the guy until A support where Rafal begrudgingly admits that Alfred makes him feel a small amount of empathy." To the Rafalfred anti, this entire sentence here reads like a sensationalized fake news headline. I don't usually write responses, but I've never seen a take that is more media illiterate when it comes to Engage than yours, so let me sit down and unpack your logic for a second.

First of all, sending in a NOISE complaint as Rafal does to Alfred in their C support is in no way abuse. Not only that, he immediately removes himself from the scene once he realizes that his words aren't getting through to Alfred, and it's Alfred who follows him. The support involves Rafal indulging Alfred in his exercise and having a revelation about the guy. Having friction between characters and initially expressing discontent about someone's vocal exercise (which Rafal refers to as sweaty grunting) is not abuse. No one has ever misconstrued this support chain as that, but...you alone seem to? Yeah, I don't know about that one.

Rafal is also a character with so much inherent value among his castmates, but you don't seem to be interested in that. Your anon message is already charged and full of hate rhetoric from the beginning, calling him mediocre tsundere which is telling to me.

Love him, hate him, Rafal is the SINGLE character in this game that both gives push back to the avatar and isn't guaranteed to get along with anyone. He has one of the most disturbing backstories in Fire Emblem period that gives depth to why he isn't as nice or as friendly as others. A lot of Rafal's supports involve bickering and back-and-forths. His prickly retorts are either harmless or meant to keep others at arm's distance; there isn't a support partner (Alear, Gregory, Alfred) of his who isn't capable of making that judgment call because they're: a.) emotionally intelligent and b.) can tell that Rafal after a thousand years of ashamed self-reflection over his actions is no longer malicious, which you can't seem to do.

"The poor guy needs someone who would take care of him not someone who would trip him over for laughs." Yeah, no. You hate to see a character remotely offer resistance in a cast that is otherwise relatively well-meaning and puritanical: check. You see things that aren't there: check. You feel the need to woobify and protect Alfred from someone he has a genuine bond with: check.

The third bit is most important, because you pretty much deny Alfred having agency and any sort of meaningful takeaway from his bond with Rafal which is wrong no matter how you interpret their support. These are two men defined and controlled by their weaknesses who start out at odds, and then reach mutual understanding of each other in a way that few others can. Who else can relate to the limitations and struggling that Alfred or Rafal feel by their weaknesses of the flesh?

Rafal even expresses his admiration for Alfred's heart and remarks that he could never match him in that. I'm not romanticizing it, this is literally what happens. He isn't harming Alfred, he isn't looking to "trip him over for laughs", and he's not Nil anymore. If this is the kind of lens you view Engage supports with, I am very concerned with what your take is for others beyond Rafal and Alfred.

[theforgottencrow]

Heyo! I randomly came across your blog some little while ago, and have only REALLY checked out your masterpost just now. When it came to things you've listed as things you enjoy, I actually was unaware most of those existed, as I'm pathetic at exploring the internet at times and randomly finding fandoms. SO, I do ask, if you could give a short basic idea on the fandom or hyperfixation or the type of genre of music the band or song belongs to and other songs or artists that may be a bit MORE popular for whatever reason and thereby more likely to be recognized by me or even just links to the songs so I can understand what it's like if it's hard to explain in words. If clarification is needed, I ask this so as to better understand a person on the internet and expand my sphere of media and perhaps obtain new hobbies or hyperfixations and thereby learn of the greatness something may be that I don't know of because of my lack of knowledge on the subject. This is also partially asked so what I can do is find a masterpost for a basic idea of these things, pin it on say, a secondary blog, and then suddenly spam my mutuals with related shit with then a link to it in case they want to learn more about this new fandom or sets of fandoms I've suddenly entered. Thank you for reading this long-as-a-Chinese-Dragon ask and for spending your time reading this.

I’m gonna be honest- my ass does NOT understand what your initially asking for- I struggle to understand questions I read if they’re longer even though I’ve re-read this over 10 times now 😭

I can’t tell if you’re asking me for a brief summary of what each fandom/fandom hyperfixation I’m in is abt/why? But- please clarify :”)))

I THINK i understand the music one you said though…so ima try and do a few of them?? Uhm srry if it’s wrong but-

1. Mindless Self Indulgence’s genre of music is Electropunk, Industrial Rock, and Digital Hardcore. They’ve made the songs Shut Me Up, Stupid MF, Sex for Homework, Get it Up, What do They Know, etc-

2. Cave Town’s genre of music is Alternative/Indie. They’ve made the songs Boys will be Bugs, Lemon Boy, Devil Town, This is Home, Juliet, etc- (I definitely recommend them if you don’t know them already, they’re a really good artist)

3. Derivakat’s genre of music is Dance/Electronic, Pop, and Indie Pop. They’ve made the songs Tool, REVIVED, Smile, Pomegranate Lips, Nightmare, Casino Royal, Cycle, etc-

4. Ryan Mack’s genre of music is Pop. They’ve created the songs I Should’ve Stayed Home, Overwhelmed, Forever and Ever and Always, Broke, Guess that’s Love, Sad Fuck, etc-

uh- that’s all I’m gonna do for now and srry if it wasn’t what you asked for- again really srry that I don’t understand but if you could maybe shorten it and make the question a tad more clear I could maybe answer it better 🥹

[musings-of-a-prodigal]

Haven't been on here in a hot minute but Season 2 of Good Omens is giving me FEELINGS (heavy spoilers and a brick of text to follow).

So ever since initially getting into Good Omens, Crowley has very much spoken to me. Falling from grace for reasons you didn't fully understand, the feeling of insufficiency, feeling betrayed by God, and all that. I first encountered Good Omens much fresher in my deconstruction, having only just left a highly Christian environment, and I was deeply bitter about the pain I had been caused. So, unsurprisingly, Crowley has generally been the character who has most resonated with me.

But then in the new season, we saw so much of Aziraphale's inner world. His cognitive dissonance and conflict over Job and Wee Morag, his obvious fear of stepping out of line even at the time of Creation. Job's story in particular stuck out to me; Aziraphale's conflict over the children and his risk of falling was very poignant, I think. And of course, we already saw a lot of this in Season 1-- the flood scene comes to mind, for starters. But I was very surprised at how much Aziraphale resonated with me this time around.

Perhaps it's the greater distance from the pain of my own deconstruction, or perhaps it's the empathy I've developed for my younger, indoctrinated self. For Aziraphale resonates with me not as I am now, but as I was back in my Christian days. Trying to see the best in everyone, but blinded by black-and-white morals that you're just beginning to see don't work in the real world. Mistrusting your own feelings because they don't align with what you've been taught. Terrified of stepping out of line, but slowly working up to acknowledging that someday you will have to in order to maintain your own integrity. It's a scary place to be, and I feel for him in that, but it is also leads to all sorts of bad decisions and pain for yourself and others.

All of which brings me to the part everyone's been talking about: the aforementioned bad decisions (aka the ending). I've seen lots of folks on the wider internet (I truly should delete tiktok at this point) not understanding why Aziraphale made the choice he did, even going so far as to claim that he must have been under some sinister outside influence.

Maybe it's just the religious trauma and projection talking, but to me it was instantly obvious why Aziraphale made the choice he did: he couldn't conceptualize that he had a choice at all. To Aziraphale, his one and only purpose is perfectly serving God. His own desires, feelings, and morals are only to be trusted insofar as they align with what he has been told God wants.

So of course, between a choice of following God/listening to his higher-ups and staying on Earth to indulge in his own "selfish" desires, to Aziraphale there is only one "correct" choice. What he wants has nothing to do with it- after all, as far as he's concerned, he has no right to want things. This isn't to justify what was obviously the wrong move (not to mention the pain caused to both Aziraphale and Crowley and all us viewers), but rather to say that it makes perfect sense for his character. And I'm very excited to see where Neil Gaiman takes this in the next season.

[dhampling]

erm! hiiiiiii! i luv luv luv ur writing, and i have a (not so) small VERY self indulgent request that i hope sounds fun enough for you to write! okay so: i’m thinking the last unicorn vibes 4 this.

one of the only things astarion can remember from his childhood (like CHILDhood) is playing with a unicorn filly in the forest near his childhood home a few times, and those being some of the purest, most magical memories he’s ever had and the last thing from his previous life that gives him some semblance of hope. i’m talking five year old astarion just running around happily with a filly that’s still all wobbly and tiny and it’s just so sweet and adorable. he tries not to think about it much anymore since it kinda just breaks his heart knowing who he is now, but yknow.

long story short: tav is said unicorn filly from astarions childhood, and she is unfortunately the last unicorn in faerûn. all of the other unicorns had been hunted in some massacre a century or so ago (that is so dark i’m sorry) and in a last ditch effort to survive, tav used her magic to permanently transform herself into a “human” (can unicorns be immortal pls i can’t handle her not lasting as long as astarion 😭) to protect herself. astarion is the last good thing she remembers, and in all the time they’ve been apart, she’s never forgotten him.

initially they don’t recognize each other because they’ve both changed so much and their memories are completely shattered from what they’ve gone through, but one night, everything just clicks for them (they have fallen in love oopsie!)

i am so sorry if u don’t like this idea it’s just been eating away at me for DAYS and i am entirely obsessed w ur writing. u can switch this up however u want if you decide to write it, this is just how i envisioned it <3 no pressure though! xoxo

UNICORN BABE IT'S YOUR TIME TO SHINE!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. SHE'LL BE UP IN MINUTES.

this has been the longest i've spent on anything I've ever written and i am THOROUGHLY excited for you to see it!

[simstryingtheirbestok]

(mainly text) Reviewing the prior four generations of the planetary legacy

I've been thinking about the things I'm glad happened, and the things I'd do differently, now that I'm over halfway through my planned eight generations. I know this won't interest everyone (it may only interest me, come to think of it) (yeah you know what, this is the definition of self-indulgence) so--below.

Generation Saturn

I would have made this a lot less story-ish if I had it to do over, mainly because it was shit as a story. But I was coming from Wordpress where, up until the last 4-5 years when everyone began to drift away, at least, there really was something of a TS3 community, where people interacted a lot with each other's posts, and the focus was more text than screenshots. It wasn't perfect--I must stress that--but it was entirely free of some of the things that make Tumblr so obnoxious. If there was drama, I remained oblivious to it.

To go from that, to the near-zero feedback I got on Tumblr initially, was like being plunged into an ice bath. The only reasons I kept going at all back then were @happy-lemon and @autonomousllama, who were kind to me, made me laugh, and liked some of the posts I did.

I did get discouraged and rush through the latter half of this generation, because I also learned that I am not a fan of Into the Future. It's fine--not everything is for everybody. At least I finally played it and found that out for myself.

Generation Uranus

The big mistake here was rushing Yuri into marriage when his first love didn't work out. Sims will marry anyone you tell them to, but it doesn't mean they'll have a happy union. And I did want to finally try out Midnight Hollow, sure; but why I thought it would be a good idea to move the pink-haired elfin lady from Dragon Valley there is a mystery.

I should never have given Enya a fairy potion to drink, either. It was cute for 5 minutes and then it was, why's the teenager up at 2 a.m.? Oh, because her room has the only audio equipment and Enya has 24/7 dance fever now.

Otherwise, I have to be honest: This was the most fun generation to play after Velma's. I love World Adventures and I got a kick out of Yuri, even when he was being a dipshit. Maybe especially then.

Generation Neptune

I mean, we know, right? The heir should have been Wendalyn. But it wasn't 100% my fault--the 64-bit version of the game being broken with respect to water, that was going to make this generation boring no matter who the heir was. If you cannot dive/swim/snorkel/perform any directed action in the ocean, you're left with fishing. 😴😴😴

I did at least get Velma out of it. It's funny--some Sims you know right away are going to be the heir. I knew it'd be Velma when she was a toddler. I loved Vivienne, too, but she was destined for a supporting role, and she turned out to be perfect for it.

Generation Mercury

My massive regret here is, I never and I mean never, ever, ever should have moved Velma out of Elmira City. She was happy as hell there and the saves weren't even getting glitchy; I just thought Aurora Skies would be ✨more wholesome for children✨ and wanted to bring up the next generation there.

It was such a mistake and it wrecked my enthusiasm completely. Putting Velma in Aurora Skies was like putting Enya in Midnight Hollow, like, why do I do this stupid shit? "Oh, the contrast will be so--" boring, self! It will be boring.

It also broke some of the Sims I took along for the ride. Neither Marco nor Ian had a mean bone in their bodies in Elmira City, but suddenly in Aurora Skies all either of them ever did was Berate Ignorance. (Neither of them was a genius or irresistible, either, though that was probably obvious already.)

Finally, I will never know if perhaps Devon would've been less into Vivienne had I left him in Elmira City, where he had not yet met her, and possibly never would have. Sparks were not flying between him and Velma, though, and that was true even in Elmira City. And I was furious, because generally, sparks flew between everyone and Velma.

Another regret: sending Undine to boarding school as a child. That stupid Aurora Skies house had a backyard I filled with every bit of playground equipment I could possibly pack into it, and then none of it ever got used except, I think Velma and Devon did woohoo in the tree house once, or... I'm pretty sure Velma banged somebody there, anyway. 🤭 It would have been so unlike her not to.

[ariibees]

Hi hi pixelrhys again do you have any fun AUs for your Terraria guys because I'm looking at you with big eyes. Do you ever consider making some if you don't have any?

This ended up rather long as I went into a big infodump, so I’m gonna toss it all under the cut!

Kinda yes, kinda no! It depends on how loosely you define AU -- Chris and Andrew (and sometimes others) occasionally get thrown into other things I’m doing, but I don’t have many actually-thought-out AUs of Purity Town proper. PT does have a sort of "levels of canon" thing going on such that the more self-indulgent ideas I have aren't really canon but are just for fun for myself, but none of them are fleshed out enough that they've gone beyond a one-off doodle here or there. (That category mostly consists of random ship stuff, fun character interactions like various characters being a part of the Lunatic Cult, indulgent fun with Chris' powers/power level and star theme, fun with Andrew's personal powers, and so on.) Things that don't go beyond a one-sentence idea, essentially. That also includes a lot of wildly differing post-game ideas that haven't yet been ironed out, though admittedly I haven't even posted most of the ideas I've had for hardmode, so that doesn't count for much.

Chris, Andrew, Alalia (the Dryad), and the Lunatic Cultist (kind of -- name irrelevant, roughly the same character) all appear as NPCs in a D&D setting I’ve been working on and off for a couple years now. The simple background of the setting as it relates to them specifically is that an age ago a civilization of arcane casters (“Ascendants”) inhabited a giant crystal cluster that grew after a star fell to earth, but all disappeared in an instant with the coming of a new god that replaced the sky. Chris, Andrew, and the LC were members of this civilization. Andrew was a Watcher, a unique role among the Ascendants for those with expertise in divination magic that allowed them to monitor the goings-on of their kingdom, a job that required a uniquely strong sense of self and strong discipline to avoid being swept away in the tide of information. Due to this quality, he was approached by the LC as a participant in a project to elevate a mortal soul into artificial godhood, but this initial attempt somewhat-failed as Andrew clawed his eyes out (and then refused any magical restoration) to reduce the amount of sensory overload his newfound godhood imparted on him. The LC also approached Chris to join them in a follow-up experiment, but he declined because he thought their research was bullshit (it was based on the true theory that reality, magic, mortal souls, and the souls of gods are all made up of the same fundamental material called Waver, but he didn’t think they had the technology to manipulate it in such a way). Chris instead worked on his own research, basically an in-universe equivalent of astrophysics-but-for-magic, studying how their world’s binary-planet (a gas dwarf named Sigil) and moon (a much smaller moon named Luna) influenced local spellcasting. When the LC’s next experiment killed every remaining Ascendant by ripping their souls from their bodies and forming them into a single light in the sky, Andrew survived due to the aforementioned partial-godhood and Chris survived due to working in a magic-insulated lab, and both were rendered unable to die as their souls were permanently bound to their bodies. Between then and the present day/start of the campaign after the crystal has been re-settled over centuries by non-Ascendants (forming the city/state of Lighthaven/Newveil), Chris starts a wizard school under the title of Wishmaster Delha, makes a magical crown to place a new king on the throne, fakes his death, and nowadays just hangs out selling potions to foolish adventurers. Andrew, on the other hand, started a mostly made-up religion around the new sky before dipping out of the spotlight and in the present day lives with Chris, helping him with his potions where able. Alalia is also present in the setting as the elvish-archdruid (i.e. not immortal but very very long-lived) leader of a druid community who oversees most of the area’s crops and natural trade goods of the area, and hates Chris/Andrew partially for being immortals, partially for being Ascendants, and partially because Chris keeps selling questionable not-druid-approved potions on the black market solely to piss her off.

Chris is also my player character for a Drakkenheim campaign (and Andrew is kinda there too)! The TL;DR of Drakkenheim is that 15 years prior to the start of the campaign, an eldritch meteor fell from the sky and hit the city of Drakkenheim, destroying much of the city and leaving the rest blanketed in a contaminating Haze, transforming the dead into monsters and making magic within the bounds of the city go haywire. In this setting, Chris is a human fighter (eldritch knight) who is mageborn (i.e. has the gene that makes people capable of channeling wizard/sorcerer magic -- relevant because mageborns have additional social-legal restrictions placed upon them due to the continent once being ruled by evil sorcerer kings and the fear of that happening again). Because of his weak magical ability and having grown up in the countryside and then having to move due to the spreading corruption as a refugee following the meteor, he missed out on being tested by the Amethyst Academy for magic and so didn’t learn about his powers until adulthood. He then had a very short stint at the Amethyst Academy before being kicked out for lack of ability, and over the next few years moved back in with his parents, met Andrew, learned another language, taught himself sword fighting, and decided to head to Drakkenheim to work as an adventurer for money and on the side try to research a way to control and eventually contain/destroy the spreading contamination that had destroyed his childhood home, while also trying to grow his own magical abilities. Kind of awkwardly, the Amethyst Academy mage NPCs tend to ignore his existence and belittle him, sole exception being his ex-teacher/ex-Academy-mage Ryan Greymere who’s also working to cleanse the city. Chris in this setting is also mildly religious (in a "it doesn't matter if it's inherently true to the world or if it gained power through people believing in it because in the end it exists and I grew up with it" kind of way), following a religion that instead of believing in a god like many of the old nature religions believes in a light of goodness inside of people. This puts him in an even more uncomfortable spot as the first paladins of this religion were renowned for freeing the continent from the ancient sorcerer kings, and thus said religion is the cause of a lot of the anti-mageborn movements floating around and the source of some nasty comments. Compared to some of the other party members (including but not limited to possibly the last surviving legitimate heir to the throne of Drakkenheim), Chris is very much meant to be Just Some Guy, but is super loyal and very ride or die as far as his relationship with the rest of the party goes (and unlike his first adventuring party, they didn't abandon him, so even better). Which is all good, because he’s not making much money from this, but instead got wrapped up in a plot to put his party member on the throne with hopes of using its power to restore the city. Andrew is kind of also present in this setting in that he’s an elven cleric of the same religion Chris follows, and is my backup character if Chris is killed. He’s Chris’ partner, and stayed with Chris’ family after Chris went off to start an adventuring career in Drakkenheim, giving him an excuse to join the party if Chris dies.

I haven’t posted much about the D&D setting I’ve been working on, but I’ll occasionally post Drakkenheim doodles when I have the energy to draw. Sometimes they include other party members, and sometimes it just sneaks into more generic Chris-as-a-character posts, as without specifically drawing his armor/scarring/party members it’s hard to distinguish his Drakkenheim design from his Terraria one. With the armor and scarring it comes off closer to his hardmode design, but as mentioned, I haven’t posted much hardmode content so that’s pretty irrelevant haha. And then as for all of the assorted self-indulgent one-off ideas, I just often don't feel up to drawing them, so they get to live in my brain rent-free instead, haha.

[wiltking]

hello! you seem like the right person to ask this — i've found myself thinking 'i wish someone wrote [thing i really want to read]' a lot before realising i could just do it myself, which i think is a good first step, but the problem is i've never written fanfiction (or any kind of fiction, for that matter) before :( do you have any good writing tips / advice that has helped you since you started writing, and continue to do so? thank you so much! (p.s. i love your work 🫶)

as this is one of the main reasons why i write, and have found so much satisfaction in the process ever since i started, i hope i can share a few words to get you going!

bottom line - it really is just a means of starting, because i don't think you can ever get worse at writing. you might get tired, you might get uninspired or lazy or distracted but as long as your passion is there you can learn and improve. and you'll never know what you're capable of until you start!

if you're already jumping into writing with yourself in mind as your ideal reader, you're in the right place. writing for self indulgence is always correct but especially so when you're starting out, because even if it's objectively 'not good', making your favorite characters kiss like barbies or explore whatever emotional trauma you want to work through with them as a vessel, you'll be getting something out of the process no matter what. whether it be joy or release or simply to get your rocks off.

but there are many different ways to write. so i can't give you a comprehensive list of do's / don'ts - the following is just a few things i've learned work great for me through trial and error:

write something short and simple. if this is your very first piece of writing, keep it small. you can always expand on it later if it's something you like and feel ready for. one of my first works was a short trans pwp fic and i have no shame in that. you don't have to make a 100k masterpiece right out the gate (or ever!) so just keep it contained while you test the waters and get a feeling for the process. also, the sense of accomplishment when finishing a work is unparalleled. which can be a lot easier to do if it's something lowkey.

drafts. my brain is a scattered mosaic in a kitchen sink garbage disposal. i physically can't write things in linear form, and i can't write in chapters. it's all or nothing. so i've found it helps me the most to put all my ideas and concepts into an incomprehensible first draft, and make sense of it later. all my initial concepts get put down in here even if they're contradictory or bad or bare or in need of change. the intent is to get all your ideas out as they come and sort out / build on them / discard them later. it's about having a skeleton you can put meat on later! i refer to this as 'writing the bones' if i ever get caught up thinking it isn't good, because that's not what the first draft is for. the bones are the foundation of your writing, not the flavor!

find your flow. the key point in starting a writing projects is to write. writing and editing are 2 separate processes. so try not to edit while writing, just keep going. if you get stuck, move to the next scene or idea. skip to the ending if you have to. write notes within your work if you're unsure about something. use brackets to indicate [character walks home here] or [describe interior] or [research this later] when you can't think of the details at the time, and do it liberally. you will get better at this through practice.

have a 'deleted sections' document. when it's time to edit you might be hesitant to delete stuff even if you know it's not working, and even if it's just a sentence or two. my trick is to cut these scenes out and paste them into a 'garbo' document. i never actually go back and reuse these deleted chunks, but it helps get over the worry of what if. chances are if you're deleting a section, it's because you have a better idea in mind. so make room for it!

stay inspired. don't forget why you're writing. if you get stuck, try revisiting what made you start your project in the first place. whenever i feel completely out of ideas i like to revisit the source material or just have helpful bits of it on hand. for my recent patho fic i kept a bunch of voice line compilations open in my tabs to listen to the way certain characters talk, and sometimes i would load up the game / revisit canon conversations to get new ideas. for one of my spideypool fics i would relisten to the song that inspired it over and over again to remember the feeling i wanted to get across. make playlists! stare at pictures of your faves! remember why you love these characters!!

sorry if this is overwhelming or too much info. i've been doing this on and off for a few years now and i'm still learning ways to make the process more smooth and ideal for myself. but the more you write the more you learn not just about writing, but about yourself and the how, what, and why you want to write. this might just be a hobby for me but i'm passionate about it and i think it's something everyone should try if you have even the slightest interest in it.

also remember this is all stuff that's specifically true for me. you might love chaptered writing or nailing out a timeline before you even start or hate listening to music when your write and that's all perfectly okay! but there's only one way to find out! so go forth and learn what the little writing beast waiting inside of you has to say!!